Boise State Falls to No. 7/6 Oregon in Final Seconds

Saturday, September 7

Eugene, Ore.

8 p.m.

Boise State

1-1 , 0-0

Oregon

2-0 , 0-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Boise St.

Oregon

Photo by: Kenna Harbison

9/8/2024 12:25:00 AM | Football

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Ashton Jeanty ran for 192 yards and three touchdowns, the most an opposing player has recorded at Autzen Stadium since 2016

By: Associated Press

EUGENE, Ore. - Boise State was on the losing end of a game-winning field goal that capped off a back-and-forth game, falling 37-34 to No. 7/6 Oregon Saturday night in Autzen Stadium.

Atticus Sappington drilled a 25-yard field goal as time expired to give the Ducks (2-0) their first victory over the Broncos (1-1) in program history.

Ashton Jeanty was on full display in the loss, recording three touchdowns and 192 yards on the ground in the contest. Boise State outgained Oregon 369 to 352 yards in the game.

Trailing 7-3 in the opening quarter, Jeanty rushed in from four yards out to cap a nine-play, 75-yard drive. Oregon scored on the ensuing drive, taking a 14-10 lead midway through the second quarter.

Maddux Madsen found Cameron Camper for a 17-yard touchdown pass with 4:51 remaining in the half as the Broncos retook a 17-14 advantage. Dalmas tacked on a 20-yard field goal right before the half as the Broncos led 20-14 at the break.

The Ducks got on the board with a 59-yard touchdown pass, but a missed PAT kept the game tied at 20 early into the half. Oregon took the lead with an 85-yard punt return late in the frame.

Boise State responded defensively, creating turnovers on back-to-back drives. Early in the fourth quarter, Zion Washington forced a fumble that was recovered by Marco Notarainni. On the very next play, Jeanty took off for 70 yards to tie the contest at 27.

The Broncos forced another fumble on the very next possession, as Andrew Simpson knocked the ball out and Ty Benefield jumped on it. The turnover set up a four-play, 22-yard drive that ended in Jeanty's third touchdown of the night as Boise State led 34-27.

The Ducks took the ensuing kickoff 100 yards to knot the game at 34 with just under 10 minutes remaining. The two teams exchanged drives down the stretch, but it was Oregon that converted on the final drive of the game to claim the victory.

Oregon is clearly still trying to find an identity.

For the second straight week the Ducks struggled, but ultimately prevailed. Atticus Sappington kicked a 25-yard field goal as time expired to give No. 7 Oregon a 37-34 victory over resilient Boise State on Saturday night.

Dillon Gabriel threw for 243 yards and two touchdowns for the Ducks (2-0), who trailed the Broncos (1-1) with 10 minutes left.

Last week, Oregon beat Idaho 24-14, another game that was closer than expected.

"As a team that's finding our identity together, I think you see a bunch of guys being more and more connected as the weeks go on, through practice, through games," Gabriel said. "And then you go through adversity and you find a way to win."

Ashton Jeanty ran for 192 yards and three touchdowns for Boise State, which went into the game as 18 1/2-point underdogs but nearly pulled off the upset.

The Broncos (1-1) went back ahead 34-27 early in the fourth quarter on Jeanty's 8-yard scoring run, but Noah Whittington had a 99-yard kickoff return that ended with Jayden Limar's recovery in the end zone to tie it 16 seconds later.

Despite the struggles, Oregon extended its nonconference home winning streak to 34 games, best nationally among active teams.

"I have a sense of relief because of the result," Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. "But, try to focus on the process, and there's a lot of things I think we can go and attack and fix. And there's certainly some things to fix, right? There's certainly some things to improve."

Boise State took the early lead with Jonah Dalmas' first-quarter field goal. Oregon's offense sputtered at the start, but Gabriel hit Evan Stewart with a 67-yard pass and then scored on a keeper.

Jeanty ran for a 3-yard TD early in the second quarter before Dillon hit Stewart with a 34-yard scoring pass to give Oregon a 14-10 edge.

The Broncos went ahead on Maddux Madsen's 17-yard TD pass to Cameron Camper. They added a 20-yard field goal to lead 20-14 at halftime.

The Ducks were ranked No. 3 in the AP Top 25 heading into the season, but dropped to No. 7 after an underwhelming 24-14 victory over Idaho in the opener.

Issues on the Ducks' offensive line appeared to continue against Boise State. Gabriel was sacked four times in the first half alone, including on Oregon's first series. The line was shuffled several times during the game.

Boise State safety Alexander Teubner was ejected for targeting early in the third quarter. On the same drive, Gabriel passed to Traeshon Holden, who sprinted downfield untouched for a 59-yard TD. Oregon missed the extra point, knotting the score at 20.

Tez Johnson had an 85-yard punt return to give the Ducks a 27-20 lead, but Jeanty tied it up again with a 70-yard touchdown dash early in the fourth quarter after Boise State recovered an Oregon fumble.

Last season Jeanty scored 19 touchdowns (14 via receptions and five on the run) and averaged 159.7 all-purpose yards per game, second in the nation. He ran for 267 yards and six touchdowns, both school records, in Boise State's season-opening victory over Georgia Southern.

Jeanty's 8-yard run put Boise State briefly in front with 10:15 to play before Limar's TD recovery tied it.

"I'm proud of our team," Boise State coach Spencer Danielson said. "We didn't finish the way we need to, we need to find a way to win that game. We're going to look at it, learn and grow from it, and we're going to be a better football team because of what we went through tonight."

The Broncos had won the three previous meetings with Oregon with the last of those games coming in 2017.

Top Broncos
- Ashton Jeanty ran for 192 yards and three touchdowns. The junior added eight yards receiving to notch his sixth-career contest with 200 or more all-purpose yards.
- Maddux Madsen threw for 148 yards and one touchdown.
- Cameron Camper caught four passes for 52 yards, including a 17-yard touchdown in the second quarter.
- Latrell Caples recorded 51 yards on five catches.
- Zion Washington forced a fumble and recorded a career-high 10 tackles.
- Andrew Simpson recorded a forced fumble and a sack. The redshirt junior finished with four tackles.

Notables
- Ashton Jeanty rushed for 3+ touchdowns for the second time this season and the fourth time in his career.
- Jeanty's 70-yard touchdown dash in the fourth quarter marked the junior's third 70+ rushing touchdown of the season.
- Jeanty's 7.7 yards per carry makes this the third consecutive season that Boise State has had a player run for over 5.0 yards per carry (minimum 10 attempts) against a Power 4/5 opponent.
- The performance also marks the first time since Nov. 27, 2020 that an Oregon opposing player has ran for over 175 yards on the Ducks, when Jermar Jefferson (Oregon State) compiled 226 yards on the ground in 29 attempts.
- Boise State recorded all four of its sacks in the first half, marking the first time since 2019 the Broncos have had 4+ sacks in back-to-back games.
- Jonah Dalmas connected on his 82nd career field goal at the end of the first half, moving him into 13th on the NCAA career list.

What's Next
Boise State will be off next weekend. The Broncos will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 21, for a 7:45 p.m. MT matchup with Portland State on The Blue.